Acupuncture - Qi Oriental MedicineChinese medicine has produced a number of well-known natural therapies, and acupuncture is one of them. Acupuncture therapy is based on the idea that the body has energy centers at various strategic points. Each one of these points relates to a specific part of the body. If you have pain in your big toe, for example, the acupuncturist would then locate the energy centre that is linked to the big toe, and insert very thin needles at that point to stimulate the energy centre. This leads to a reduction in the pain in your big toe, as the acupuncture point is linked into your central nervous system. Acupuncture therapy can be used for a variety of physical and mental health issues. Probably the most common one is pain relief. It sounds a bit strange - to relieve pain, you insert needles into yourself! But many people have found that it works. As well as stimulating the energy centers, acupuncture helps to increase the body's level of endorphins, or "feel good" chemicals. These also help to reduce the level of pain being experienced. The immune system can also benefit from acupuncture therapy. Research has shown that acupuncture stimulates the production of white blood cells, which helps boost the body's natural resistance to illness. Levels of Alpha, Beta and Gamma Globulins also increase after acupuncture therapy. Alpha and Beta Globulins are believed to assist the white blood cells fight infection effectively, and Gamma Globulins help produce immune antibodies. More recently, acupuncture therapy has also been used to assist in recovery from drug and alcohol addiction. Acupuncture helps to reduce withdrawal symptoms and cravings, relieves tension, and just generally helps people to relax. Many drug treatment clinics through the United States are now using acupuncture therapy as an important component of their recovery program. Many top sportspeople also find acupuncture therapy of great benefit in improving training and performance. Because acupuncture releases the tension in muscles and surrounding tissue, it helps the nervous, lymphatic and circulatory systems to function more efficiently. As well as performance benefits, acupuncture therapy can speed up the healing of sports related injuries and assist in the management of pain. Another popular use of acupuncture therapy is in the treatment of allergies. Basically, allergies are caused by the immune system overreacting to substances that are usually harmless. Pollen, dust and chemicals are common environmental factors that trigger allergies. There are also food allergies caused by milk, wheat and shellfish, to name a few potential causes. The symptoms of allergies can be very unpleasant - watery eyes, stuffy nose and sneezing. In extreme cases, allergies can cause joint pain, kidney problems and depression, amongst other things. Acupuncture therapy helps to detoxify the body and strengthen the immune system, which can reduce or even eliminate the allergic reaction. Of course, there are many other reasons people use acupuncture therapy. Many internal diseases and disorders respond well to acupuncture, including asthma, bronchitis, ulcers and hypertension. The theory is the same, although western medicine struggles to explain exactly why acupuncture can be effective. Perhaps believing it will work plays a part, but nobody knows for sure. Often in more complicated conditions, acupuncture is used in combination with massage and herbal remedies. Other conditions that have responded well to acupuncture therapy include stress, chronic fatigue syndrome, menopause, PMS and menstruation difficulties. If you believe that acupuncture may be of benefit to you, then the first step is to find a reliable local practitioner, and call them to discuss your condition. They will soon be able to tell you whether or not acupuncture is likely to be effective. In the end, the only way to find out what acupuncture therapy can do for you is to try it out. |
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